


Shut Up and Dance

by EclecticIsMyMiddleName



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Eventual Smut, Homophobic Language, Kissing, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Making Out, Rating will go up, Some Humor, only in the first chapter really
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:55:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24397648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EclecticIsMyMiddleName/pseuds/EclecticIsMyMiddleName
Summary: Adrenaline pumping through his veins, Sanji grabbed Ace’s shoulder and shook it. “Hey, you!”Ace turned, his expression lighting up when he recognized him. “Hey, you’re Sanji, ain’t you? One of Loof’s old friends?”“Yeah I am, but I can’t reminisce right now!” Sanji replied, heart pounding at what he was about to do. “Look, that lady back there is being rude and homophobic! I wanna piss her off so she’ll fucking leave!” A flush erupted on his cheeks as he asked, “Mind if we kissed a little so she’ll leave?”
Relationships: Coby/Usopp (One Piece), Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace & Sabo, Portgas D. Ace/Vinsmoke Sanji, Usopp & Vinsmoke Sanji
Comments: 11
Kudos: 53





	Shut Up and Dance

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to nervous-screaming for beta-ing and coming up with the fic name!! ^u^ Go check out her stuff!!

Sanji stared at himself as he buttoned his shirt in the mirror.

“Okay, this is gonna be fine,” he told himself, fingers stumbling on a button. He took a deep breath, held it, then exhaled. Standing straighter, he moved on to the next button. “I can do this. No one is going to care about my shirt.”

His eyes wandered down to the embroidered patch on his shirt pocket - a simple rainbow. The gray color of the rest of his shirt made the little detail stand out, drawing the eye right to it.

Sanji swallowed hard and forced himself to lift his gaze. Looking himself in the face, he cleared his throat. “I can do this. I don’t have to be afraid to be myself. Everything is going to be fine.”

 _I hope,_ he added in his head.

After he spent ten minutes fixing his hair, Sanji stepped outside his apartment. The building was quiet as he went down the hall, his loafers softly thumping against the carpeted flooring. When he reached the exit, he did a double check for everything he needed. Patting his jeans, he ticked his keys, wallet, license, and cellphone off a mental list.

 _Okay, I’m ready to go._

He hovered, eyes lingering on the doorknob. With a frustrated noise under his breath, he gripped the doorknob and opened the door. 

_I’m being ridiculous!_ he berated himself, marching to his car and plopping into the driver’s seat. He shut the door with a little more force than necessary and ignited the engine. _I’m just going to the park for a walk! I live in a progressive city! No one is going to give a shit about my shirt!_

There was a park not ten minutes away, but the drive there might as well have been less than half that. Before Sanji knew it, he was pulling into a parking spot and stepping out of his car.

A frisbee almost conked him in the face, if he hadn’t ducked at the last second.

“Sorry about - hey, Sanji!”

Sanji straightened, reflexively running a hand through his hair to fix it. He looked for the sound of the voice and relief washed over him. “Usopp! I wasn’t expecting to see you here!”

Usopp ran up to him, grinning from ear-to-ear. He didn’t slow down as he got closer, only stopping when he had scooped Sanji up into a tight hug. Sanji turned pink, eyes darting around to make sure no one was staring at the display. But when Usopp lifted him a few inches off the ground, the anxiety bubbling low in his gut was momentarily replaced by amusement.

“Usopp!” Sanji chided, laughing as his friend set him down. “You don’t have to do that every time you see me!”

“But I never get to see you anymore!” Usopp objected, his grin turning into a smirk as he flexed a bicep. “Besides, I can lift people now! No way I’m not gonna do it when I get the chance!”

“That’s fair,” Sanji replied, reaching out to touch Usopp’s arm, then thinking better of it. “Can’t believe it was only two years ago that you were a total twig!”

“Hey, I wasn’t _that_ skinny!” Usopp protested, pausing and then nodding. “Okay, I was a bean pole. But _now,_ I’m the great _Captain Usopp!”_

Sanji snorted as Usopp flexed both arms. “In your dreams! Last I checked, you’re _not_ the captain of your college’s football team.”

Usopp wilted, slouching as he let his hands fall. Ever undeterred, Usopp stood straight and put his hands on his hips. “The Great Usopp may not be captain _yet,_ but he will be!”

“As soon as your current captain graduates, then the position is all yours, right?” Sanji asked, fingers itching to grab a cigarette. He ignored the urge to smoke, having seen children playing when he pulled in. Instead, he shoved his hands in his pockets and tried to stamp down the craving. “He is graduating _this_ year, right?”

“Yep!” Usopp replied, his smile faltering. “Although, everyone will be sad to see Ace go! He’s such a cool dude! He’s like the team’s big brother, y’know?”

Sanji nodded, cheeks turning pink at the mention of Ace. The guy had been the reason Sanji had finally accepted he wasn’t straight. His manners and kindness had impressed Sanji right away, making his heart pound in a way it never had before around other guys. His good looks didn’t hurt, either. His black hair hung down to his shoulders, his skin was sun-kissed, and a perpetual grin crinkled the corners of his dark eyes. Sanji had often found himself wanting to trace every freckle on Ace’s skin to the one beside it.

“I don’t know much about him,” Sanji admitted. “Other than he’s Luffy’s big brother and the captain of the football team.”

“You should meet him sometime!” Usopp said, beaming. “He’s really chill most of the time, and supportive!”

“‘Supportive’?” Sanji repeated, heart rate picking up a little when he remembered the rainbow on his shirt. “How so?”

“When we had an instance of some jackass bullying another teammate for being gay, Ace didn’t let that fly,” Usopp explained, making a fist and punching into the palm of his other hand. “He confronted the guy and kicked him off the team! Then he called a team meeting and came out to everyone as bi! The whole vibe of the team totally changed after that! It was like we could all be ourselves, y’know?”

“I bet that’s nice,” Sanji replied, glancing down at his shoes. He only looked away for a moment, but when he lifted his eyes back to Usopp, his friend had worry wrinkling his brows. “What?”

“You okay?” Usopp asked. “You seem tense. Well, tense _-er.”_

“It’s nothing, don’t worry,” Sanji said, brushing the notion away with a wave of his hand. “Just uh, pushing myself outside my comfort zone a little, y’know?”

“Well, I did think it was a little odd that you came to the park all by yourself,” Usopp remarked, tapping his chin with his index finger. “You’ve never done that before. Now that I think about it, I-” He froze, eyes going wide as he lowered his gaze. 

Sanji followed his line of sight, then covered his pocket. “What?!”

A grin broke out on Usopp’s face and bounced on the balls of his feet. “You’re wearing the shirt! I’m so proud of you!”

Sanji huffed, lowering his hand and seriously contemplating lighting a cigarette. “Yeah, yeah. I’m wearing the shirt you got me at Pride last year! So fuckin’ what?!”

“Easy, dude,” Usopp chuckled, slinging an arm around Sanji’s shoulders. “I’m just glad to see you trying to get more comfortable with yourself! I know this hasn’t been easy for you.”

“Thanks.” Sanji gave a halfhearted smile, crossing his arms over his chest. “So, what are you doing here?”

“Playin’ frisbee with my boyfriend!” Usopp replied, gesturing to a pink-haired young man about twenty feet away. The man was sitting down, picking at a flower in his hand. “You remember Coby, right?”

“Yeah, I do. Never thought you’d be dating a future naval officer!” Sanji teased, elbowing Usopp in the ribs. “You like a man in uniform, huh?”

“What can I say?” Usopp replied, chuckling and putting a hand to his chest. “The heart wants what the heart wants!”

Sanji laughed softly, then tucked his hair behind his ear. “So uh, I don’t really have anyone out here to hang out with. Mind if I join the two of you?”

Usopp’s smile disappeared, and he let his arm fall from Sanji’s shoulders. Palming the base of his neck, Usopp averted his gaze. “Uh, actually he and I are on a date right now.” He threw a hand up, palm out as if to tell Sanji to wait. “But I can ask him if he’s cool with you hanging out! I’m sure he won’t mind!”

Sanji’s shoulders slumped and he stuck his hands in his pockets. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t want to third-wheel, y’know? I’ll be fine.”

“A-Are you sure?” Usopp asked, uncertainty pulling his mouth down into a frown. “Coby wouldn’t get mad if-”

“Nah, I’m good!” Sanji interrupted, holding a hand up to wave away the suggestion. “I’m a grown man; I can enjoy the park by myself. Now, go-” He gestured to Coby. “-enjoy your date!”

Usopp opened his mouth to respond, then closed it with a sigh. “Alright, then. See you later, okay?”

Sanji nodded, turning his back to Usopp and starting down the nearest sidewalk. He could feel Usopp’s gaze burning into his back, but he kept walking forward. Once he was sure he was out of sight, he reached into his shirt pocket. He pulled out the cigarette pack he stashed in there, sliding out a fresh cigarette and lighting it. Inhaling, the nicotine hit him, then burned on his tongue as he exhaled a plume of smoke.

 _Well, I planned to come here by myself anyway,_ he surmised. Guilt crawled under his skin as a couple of kids ran by, but he couldn’t bring himself to stomp out his cigarette. _I haven’t passed many people yet, but I will. This park is always busy as shit. That’s when I’ll_ **_really_ ** _need this cigarette._

Not two minutes later, a couple more people came into view. They were walking towards Sanji - or rather, one was briskly walking towards him while the other dragged behind.

“I thought you said you could keep up?” the first one remarked, sending a mean little grin over his shoulder at the blue-haired man behind him. He adjusted his glasses with one finger, not even breaking stride. “Guess you were ‘clowning’ around?”

His laugh sounded like a slide whistle and the man behind him scowled. His blue hair was falling out of the ponytail it was tied up in. Sweat stained his shirt and his face was almost as red as his nose. “Shut up, wax-for-brains!”

Sanji sped up his pace, passing by them and only slowing down when their bickering faded.

 _Well, they didn’t notice me or my shirt,_ Sanji thought. The anxiety inside him was still present, however. _Then again, I don’t think they noticed me over their conversation?_

Sanji passed by a few more people before the anxiety finally began to ebb. He even felt relaxed enough to snuff out his cigarette and toss it in the first trash can he came across.

 _I guess I was overreacting?_ Sanji thought, smiling as the breeze combed through his hair. _I didn’t have anything to worry about. No one’s gonna comment on my-_

“Ugh, I think I’m gonna be sick!”

Stumbling, Sanji came to a halt and looked around for the source of the outburst.

A short, stocky woman glared at him from a few yards away, her beady little eyes fixed on Sanji’s shirt.

Sanji cleared his throat, his guard inching back up. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

“You can ‘help me’ by putting on a less offensive shirt!” the woman exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at him. “How dare you wear a rainbow to a _public_ park?! We all know what it means! Haven’t you considered the idea that normal people might not want to see that?!”

Anger flared in Sanji’s chest and his temper nearly blew right there. He had to force himself to take a breath to remain calm, lest he cause a scene. “‘Normal people’ don’t harass strangers over their clothes! So kindly go to Hell!”

“I won’t, but you will!” the woman barked, putting her hands on her wide hips.

Sanji opened his mouth to reply, then snapped it shut. He marched forward, putting his back to her and praying she’d fucking leave.

“All men should love women!” she heckled, following him. “It’s a waste of women’s beauty when men only want other men! What would us ladies do if _all_ men suddenly wanted other men?!”

“Go away!” 

“Not until you agree to burn that offensive shirt!”

Sanji bit back a biting remark, reminding himself that there were others around. He didn’t want them overhearing him argue with her, knowing if he engaged her that she would only draw more attention to them. If she didn’t leave soon, he could always outrun her.

As Sanji sped up, he spotted someone familiar out of the corner of his eye. He could only see the man’s profile, but he recognized the wavy black hair and freckles anywhere. They had only run into each other once or twice, but Ace’s appearance had been branded in his memory ever since.

Ignoring the woman’s protests, Sanji practically jogged over to Ace. Adrenaline pumping through his veins, he grabbed Ace’s shoulder and shook it. “Hey, you!”

Ace turned, a football in his hands. His expression lit up when he recognized him. “Hey, you’re Sanji, ain’t you? One of Loof’s old friends?”

“Yeah I am, but I can’t reminisce right now!” Sanji replied, heart pounding at what he was about to do. “Look, that lady back there is being rude and homophobic! She won’t leave me alone and I wanna piss her off so she’ll fucking leave!” A flush erupted on his cheeks as he asked, “Mind if we kissed a little so she’ll leave?”

“Uh.” Ace turned bright red, his freckles standing out like they had been dotted on with a pen. Clearing his throat, he looked from Sanji to the woman and back. His blush faded just a tad as he broke into a grin. “Y’know what? Sure!”

“Really?!” Sanji exclaimed, watching Ace toss the football to a blond guy thirty feet away. When Ace turned back to him, Sanji tried not to seem overeager. He bit down on a smile growing on his lips, heart rate jacking up further when Ace’s hands - strong, hot hands - settled on his waist.

“Mind if I dip you?” Ace asked, eyes falling down to Sanji’s lips. “Just to _really_ piss her off?”

Sanji nodded dumbly, face burning as he felt Ace wind an arm around his waist. Ace’s other hand slid up between Sanji’s shoulder blades, cupping the back of his head. In one smooth movement, Ace dipped him and Sanji slung an arm over his broad shoulders to keep his balance.

“Still cool with this?” Ace asked under his breath.

“Go for it,” Sanji replied, Ace’s lips covering his smile a second later.

As soon as their lips met, Sanji heard the woman screech. Fleeting satisfaction rose inside him, the feeling pushed aside as he returned the kiss. His eyes fell shut, hands curling into the fabric of Ace’s baggy tank top. Ace kept the kiss chaste, eyes closed and lips surprisingly soft. 

Sanji cracked an eye open, looking out of his peripheral vision. The woman was gone; most likely stormed off after the display. Relieved that he was finally rid of her, he slid his eye shut.

All too soon, Ace broke away.

“Is she gone?” Ace mumbled, starting to turn his head.

“Not sure,” Sanji lied, a hand grabbing Ace’s cheek and pulling him back in for another kiss. Ace chuckled against his lips, smiling into it. The sound elicited a fluttering feeling beneath Sanji’s ribs, and he felt a little bolder. 

Parting his lips, the tip of his tongue darted out, brushing over Ace’s lower lip. Ace’s breath hitched, jaw going slack and allowing Sanji to deepen the kiss. Sanji slipped his tongue into his mouth, a spark hopping down his spine as their tongues met.

Slowly, Ace stood up straight, still holding Sanji flush against him. A pleased hum rumbled in the back of his throat, fingers curling in Sanji’s hair. As their lips moved together, Sanji slid the hand on Ace’s cheek up into his hair. The dark locks tangled in his fingers, and Sanji gave them a tug. 

A soft moan escaped Ace’s lips, muffled by the kiss. Ace broke away, angling his head and nipping at Sanji’s lower lip playfully. “Don’t go rilin’ me up like that, now. We’re in public, remember?”

Sanji felt weak at the knees, warmth pooling his gut. He was weighing his chances of dragging Ace back to his car when Ace left a peck on the corner of his mouth. With that, Ace pulled away.

“Looks like that kiss got that lady to leave you alone?” Ace remarked, eyes flicking over Sanji’s shoulder before settling back on the blond’s flushed face. His pupils were blown wide, half-hidden by half-lidded eyes. Pink dusted his cheeks, the grin on his face softer at the edges. “Too bad it had to end so soon.”

“Does it have to?” Sanji blurted, chewing on his lip when he realized what he’d just said. “I-I mean-!”

“I’d love to kiss you again, but-” Ace interrupted, rubbing a hand on the nape of his neck. His gaze averted to the ground, his voice softening. “-I’d love to go on a date with you _more.”_

Sanji’s feet were frozen to the spot, despite how much his face burned. “I-I uh, really?”

 _Oh my God, this is happening!_ Sanji thought, unable to stop the grin that broke out on his face. He looked away, tucking his hair behind his ear. _The guy I’ve been crushing on is asking me out, holy shit!_

“Is uh, that okay?” Ace asked, interrupting Sanji’s inner thoughts. Reaching up, his fingers tucked under Sanji’s jaw and tilted his face back up. It was Ace’s turn to appear shy, eyes falling down to Sanji’s collar instead of holding his gaze. “I’ve wanted to ask you out for a while now. I just uh, wasn’t sure you’d go for someone like me.”

Genuine surprise took over Sanji’s expression, his eyebrows raising and his smile falling. “What do you mean?”

Ace shrugged, letting his hand fall. “I’m not the smartest guy around, y’know? And Luffy’s always tellin’ me what an amazing cook you are and well, I’m not that great at it. And you always dress so nice and I just throw on whatever.” He glanced down at himself, tugging at the collar of his tank top for emphasis. “Figured you’d want someone a little more uh, cultured?”

 _I don’t believe it!_ Sanji thought, reaching a hand up to cover his mouth as he started laughing. _He has a crush on me, too! We could’ve asked each other out this whole time!_

Ace tilted his head. “Uh, Sanji? You okay?” This time, embarrassment turned his face red and he cast his eyes down at his shoes. “If you don’t want to go out, that’s fine! But you don’t have to laugh in my-!”

Sanji covered Ace’s mouth with his hand, then lowered his hand to trace his fingertips under his jaw. Tilting Ace’s chin up, Sanji stepped forward and brought their lips together again. As they kissed, Ace’s hands came up, hovering before settling on Sanji’s hips.

When Sanji pulled back, he let his hand fall down to rest on Ace’s chest, feeling the man’s heart beating beneath his palm. “I’m sorry for laughing. I wasn’t expecting you to talk about yourself like that, or admit that you like me, too.”

“‘Too’?” Ace repeated, perking up. “So you-?”

Sanji nodded. “I’ve liked you since I first met you, actually.” He wrapped his arms around Ace’s neck, leaning in until their noses brushed. “So I’d love nothing more than to go on a date with you.”

Smiling, Ace’s eyes crinkled at the corners. “Ain’t I lucky? Just wait, Blondie, I’m gonna take you on the best date ever!”

“‘Blondie’?” Sanji repeated, snickering. “If you’re _that_ confident, then alright, Hotshot!”

“‘Hotshot’?” Ace pretended to consider it. “I like it!”

A voice called out from nearby, _“Hey!”_

Ace and Sanji pulled apart just enough to look towards the source of the interruption. 

Luffy was tapping his foot impatiently, hands cupped around his mouth to amplify his voice. “Are you two done yet?! We weren’t done playing catch!”

“Ah, right,” Ace muttered, chuckling and turning his attention back to Sanji. “I guess this means our date will have to wait until later?”

“How about after you’re done with your brothers?” Sanji suggested, watching out of the corner of his eye as Luffy’s other brother wrangled him into a headlock. “If they don’t kill each other first?”

“Eh, Sabo’s only rough-housin’,” Ace replied. “And I wish we could, but the rest of my day is shot. After my brothers and I are done here, I gotta hit the gym. By the time I’ll be done, it’ll be pretty late.”

Sanji licked his lips, a part of him tempted to ask if he could tag along to the gym. If only to watch Ace work out, of course. But he pushed the urge down and said, “Guess our first date will have to be _really_ special then, to make up for it?”

“I’ll do whatever you want!” Ace promised, pressing a kiss to the corner of Sanji’s mouth. “Anything for you, Blondie.”

Sanji bit his lip, trying to contain the giddy feeling below his ribs. _Looks like I already have him wrapped around my finger? This was_ **_not_ ** _how I expected my day to go!_

“Ace, help me!” Luffy cried, interrupting them yet again. He made an exaggerated choking sound as Sabo tackled him to the ground. “I’ve been betrayed!”

“Yield!” Sabo demanded, laughing as Luffy kicked his legs. “Yield and I’ll let you go!”

 _“Never!”_ Luffy exclaimed dramatically.

Ace and Sanji laughed before looking back to each other.

“I’d better go,” Sanji said, hesitating a second before stepping back. As their arms untangled from each other, Sanji let his hands fall to his sides. “You’d better call me about that date, got it?”

Ace’s expression lit up and he patted his shorts’ pockets. A moment later, he yanked out a marker and presented his wrist. “Here, write down your number!”

“I feel like we’re in high school or some shit,” Sanji teased, taking it and uncapping it. “Writing things down on our hands or arms. I’d always get in trouble for doing that.”

“Me, too,” Ace replied, eyes fixed on the way the marker moved as Sanji wrote his number down. “But that didn’t stop me! My skull’s pretty hard, so I guess that lesson just never sank in?”

Ace tapped the side of his head with a grin for emphasis. Sanji shook his head with a laugh, clicking the cap back on and stepping forward. 

_What a dork,_ Sanji thought, letting his eyes fall down to Ace’s lips. _I hope he’s easy to fluster..._

Leaning in until their faces were less than an inch apart, Sanji’s hand found Ace’s pocket and slid the marker in. The marker dropped out of his hand, his fingertips dragging against the hard muscle of Ace’s thigh as Sanji slowly retracted his hand. The red that erupted on Ace’s face was worth the effort.

 _Looks like I was right?_ Sanji observed, the flirty demeanor he used cracking as he laughed. When he had wrangled his laughter in, he stole a quick kiss. “I’ll see you around, Hotshot!”

“See you,” Ace murmured, a dazed look in his eyes as Sanji turned. A wobbly grin spread across his lips as Sanji walked away, putting a hand on his hip and the other on his neck. “Wow…”

Sanji looked over his shoulder a few times as the distance between them grew, stealing a last look and then one more. Once he was out of sight, Ace looked down at the numbers written in neat penmanship on his arm. The black ink stood out starkly on his tanned skin. The fingertips of his other hand rested below it so as to not mar it.

“I’m gonna give him the best date he’s ever had!” Ace promised himself.

_Whack!!_

Something hit him square in the back of the head and he fell flat on his face. Sitting up, he shook off the dizziness and looked around. He quickly spotted the football on the ground, then heard his brothers’ roaring laughter. It wasn’t hard to put two and two together and Ace was on his feet, running towards Luffy and Sabo with a battle cry.

Meanwhile, Sanji had a spring in his step as he finished his walk. Nothing could make the grin on his face fall, too giddy to think of anything else.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a twitter if you wanna go follow me there!  
> Twitter: https://twitter.com/EclecticWrites  
> My handle is @EclecticWrites.
> 
> I have a tumblr, too!!  
> Tumblr: eclecticwrites.tumblr.com


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